Project Group ProDetekt at Life Science Inkubator (LSI) Sachsen receives maximum patent protection in Europe for PRET-ELISA key technology

- Significant performance and efficiency improvement of ELISA-based protein analytics -

Dresden, Germany, March 15, 2018 - ProDetekt, a start-up project incubated at Life Science Inkubator Sachsen, has been granted broad European patent protection for its novel PRET-ELISA technology supplementing the ELISA method used in bioanalytics world-wide. ELISA (Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay) is being applied routinely in biomedical research and everyday clinical practice, e.g. to determine disease-relevant biomarkers in complex biological samples.

However, validated ELISA kits today are commercially available for only about 6% of all human proteins. For the determination of all other proteins researchers need to design their own assays from various reagents and components. The establishment, validation and optimization of these self-assembled kits is costly, time-consuming and does not always deliver the desired performance. The PRET technology developed by ProDetekt allows for a substantial expansion of the ELISA measuring range by about 2 to 3 orders of magnitude. As a result, establishing and validating ELISA-based protein analytics is becoming easier and more cost effective. Applications include new detection kits for disease research. Following the granting of the EU patent by the European Patent Office, the technology is now broadly protected in Europe.
ProDetekt originates from a Junior Research Group at the Chair of Bioanalytics located at the University of Leipzig's Center for Biotechnology and Biomedicine (BBZ). The project was funded from 2007 to 2014 by the Innoprofile- and GO-Bio-Program of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

Following the start of the incubation at LSI Sachsen in May 2016, the group conducted extensive research and development in close collaboration with LSI Sachsen and LSI's patent attorneys to rapidly generate the necessary scientific data. The broad patent claims have now been fully accepted by the European Patent Office.

"Our strong research results were able to convince the patent examiners and now provide for a sound validation of our technology," said Dr. Karin Büttner, a co-inventor and team member of ProDetekt.

"This milestone achieved in the incubation phase is a considerable success and an important prerequisite for founding our start-up company and attracting investors," said Dr. Norman Gerstner, project leader of ProDetekt.

About the PRET Technology
ProDetekt's novel PRET (Peptide Resonance Energy Transfer) technology is based on an engineered enzyme cascade and the cleavage of a peptide substrate, which results in a strong increase of the fluorescence signal. It thereby enables the highly sensitive and dynamic detection of proteins with standard ELISA equipment. The combination of ELISA and PRET allows for a significant improvement of the performance and efficiency of ELISA-based protein analytics.

About LSI Sachsen GmbH & Co. KG (LSI Sachsen)
LSI Sachsen was founded in 2013 as a subsidiary of Life Science Inkubator GmbH Bonn in Dresden with support from the federal state of Sachsen. LSI offers potential entrepreneurs an incubation concept which is unique in Germany. Innovative biotechnology, life science and medical technology projects are evaluated at an early stage and advanced to financing and market stages in close collaboration with the respective project group. The incubation project is based on five elemants: evaluation, seed financing, project management, HR, and industry transfer. LSI Sachsen is an affiliated institute of TU Dresden.
Further information can be found at: www.life-science-inkubator.de (German only)

Contacts
Dr. Norman Gerstner
Project Leader, ProDetekt
Life Science Inkubator Sachsen GmbH & Co.KG
Tatzberg 47
D-01307 Dresden, Germany
Tel.: 0351-7965386
Fax: 0351-7965377
gerstner@life-science-inkubator.de

Dr. Frank Striggow
Chief Operating Officer (COO)
Life Science Inkubator Sachsen GmbH & Co. KG
Tatzberg 47
D-01307 Dresden
Germany
Tel.: 0351-7965380
Fax: 0351-7965377
striggow@life-science-inkubator.de

Media inquiries:
akampion
Dr. Ludger Weß / Ines-Regina Buth
Tel: +49 40 8816 5964
Tel: +49 30 2363 2768
info@akampion.com

This release was published on openPR.